PCB chief to meet ICC President again

Pakistan Cricket Board chief Ejaz Butt will meet International Cricket Council President David Morgan for another round of talks in Dubai on August 27 to resolve the dispute over the shifting of the 2011 World Cup matches from the country.

A senior PCB official said Butt was confident that the meeting would be a conclusive one and contentious matters would be settled to the satisfaction of Pakistan.

Butt has repeatedly said Pakistan was ready for an out of court settlement with the ICC which has addressed most of its concerns arising from the moving of the 14 World Cup matches from Pakistan.

ICC issued a statement, stating its intent to settle the issue amicably without taking legal recourse.

"Although nothing has yet been agreed, there remains a strong will on both sides to conclude this matter as soon as possible without recourse to legal means, and with that in mind we will meet in Dubai on August 27 with a view to reaching a resolution that is acceptable to both parties," the statement said.

"In the light of our latest discussions I remain confident we can achieve that goal, something that would allow all of us, the ICC and its members, to focus on our key objective -? the staging of a successful ICC Cricket World Cup in the Asian sub-continent in 2011," it added.

Pakistan has decided not to pursue any legal action against the ICC as it was reportedly guaranteed a payment of around USD 20 million from the ICC that included USD 10.5 million as hosting fees for its share of the World Cup matches and another USD 9 million against the sale of tickets, hospitality boxes and other sources from the matches.

The Governing council of the PCB has, however, told Butt to include a clause in the out of court settlement with the ICC that would leave Pakistan an outside chance of hosting some of its matches at home if the security situation improves in the country to the satisfaction of the ICC and other member countries.